HOW CAN WE TELL WHAT’S GOING ON IN IRAQ?

We cannot rely on the mainstream press to provide unbiased reporting about the War on Terror or Operation Iraqi Freedom. Sunday’s Washington Post included an editorial titled “New Questions in Iraq” which attacked Marine General Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and all of our military leaders, saying that they are so obsessed with drawing down our forces in Iraq that they make “ludicrously positive” statements about our progress. This is unsurprising coming from a newspaper that does not like to report any of the positive facts about the war and, as I have pointed out many times, they distort the truth to make it look like we are losing the war. They support the “loser attitude” of the Democratic Party leadership.

Their editorial is, I assume, referring to the comments General Pace made on March 5th to the effect that the terrorists are desperate, and their attack on the Golden Mosque in Samarra was aimed at trying to push Iraq into civil war. General Pace also indicated that Iraqi security forces and their leaders are staying calm. This does not mean there is no danger of civil war breaking out. It does mean that the Iraqi government and the Iraqi people recognize what the terrorists are up to, and are working hard to try to ensure that the country does not slip into civil war. The Post is totally ignoring the fact that the security forces are very popular with the Iraqi people, and also that they understand what the insurgency is trying to do. If you would like to read exactly what General Pace said, it can be found at http://www.dod.mil/news/Mar2006/20060305_4394.html.

In November of 2005, Senator Joe Lieberman (D) from Connecticut stated “Our troops must stay”, and reported on the significant progress he had seen between visits after returning from his fourth trip to Iraq. This received virtually no coverage in the Washington Post and other liberal newspapers.

If one wants facts and not pre-judgments, we must go to news sources other than liberal newspapers like the Washington Post. I for one trust reports from sources such as the American Forces Information Service, Multinational Force Iraq, The Fox News Network, and CNSNews.com. The American Forces Information Service includes reports on individual operations such as “Iraqi Police Nab Insurgents; Soldiers Find Weapons”. If you look at the popular media reports on these operations and then compare them to the reports given by our military leaders, it is easy to see who is lying or distorting the truth. Check out the article by Randy Hall, a CNSNews.com Staff Writer/Editor, titled “Job Is Getting Done in Iraq, Despite US Press, Veterans Say”, which provides a view from our soldiers.